ROBBIE NEILSON insists Hearts will sign players for the long haul back to the top – not just one-season wonders.

The Jambos first-team coach spent last week at Largs obtaining his UEFA ‘A’ Licence in between furtive phone calls to players and agents.

And he hopes the security of a long-term deal will attract a higher calibre of player.

He said: “It’s been busy but hopefully we can get three in within the next fortnight.

“This bit is new for me. It’s easy to think ‘He’s a good player’ but when it comes down to making a decision, a commitment to bring in a guy for three years, taking a chunk out of the budget? You need to make sure it’s the right decision.”

“I’ve been speaking to people who know my targets, finding out what type of person they are.

“It’s important to get the right ones because we don’t have a big enough budget to waste.

“We want guys in to get us out of the Championship and back into the top six.

“We don’t want to just be giving one-year deals to get us up, then have to get someone else. That’s how we’re hoping to attract good players, by saying if they get us up they’ll have two years in the Premiership.”

Neilson, who was appointed along with director of football Craig Levein, insists the second tier will be a thrilling league.

He said: “Celtic will run away with the Premiership title again, they’ll be 15 points clear by October and have it wrapped up by February or March.

“The Championship will be the main focus of the season. There’ll be big travelling supports and a novelty factor of visiting different grounds.